John Frenette faces charges of criminal threatening and reckless conduct.

Litchfield police said they were called to an apartment building on the Charles Bancroft Highway on Thursday night by people saying that an intoxicated man with a handgun was threatening to kill people.

"The subsequent investigation revealed that the subject that had the gun stated that he was owed $40 from one of the people that was there and he was demanding the money back, and when he didn't receive the money immediately, that's when he armed himself with a firearm," said Chief Joseph O'Brion.

Investigators said Frenette said he was going to kill the man he believed owed him the money, and Frenette pointed the pistol in the face of another man at the scene.

At one point, one of the people in the parking lot was able to disarm Frenette and hold him until police arrived, officials said.

"My understanding is when he was waving the gun around, he wasn't paying attention at some point, and somebody ran over and basically tackled him and wrestled the gun away from him," O'Brion said.

There were no shots fired and no one was hurt, but police said it was a volatile situation.

"You have an intoxicated male. You have a gun. You have a number of people involved," O'Brion said. "And then once you bring the police in, we see somebody with a firearm. I mean, it escalates what the response is from police."

Frenette was arraigned Friday, and his bail was set at $10,000 cash or surety.